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Why Good Customer Service Is So Important.

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Having great customer service is something that benefits every single aspect of your business. Not only does it help you generate new customers through referrals and word of mouth, but it also helps with returning customers. It’s a known fact that consumers who have had a pleasant experience are more likely to share it, and more likely to return.

The perfect example, is our business AngelStar Digital. We have been serving Windsor-Essex’s printing & design needs for over 25 years, and still have returning customers since day 1. The primary reason for this is because we are a family owned business, and treat every person that walks into that door with respect, and like a human. We’ve managed to even built up friendships over that period of time, and it’s something we are very proud of.

So if that right there isn’t a solid enough reason you should be prioritizing quality-customer service, i don’t know what is.

On a more direct level, the way you interact with your customers directly reflects the workplace atmosphere, and personality of your business. So if your customer service people have an attitude towards the customer, people will automatically assume they hate working there, and that your place of employment is probably toxic. Which is not exactly a good thing, capiche?

However, what defines great customer service isn’t based on friendliness alone. Below, is a visual to show you what consumers value the most from their interactions with customer service.

This makes customer feedback very important, for all parties involved. Check the ratings for business, one of the primary reasons you will get a low rating is because of your customer service. You could sell the worlds greatest product, but if you don’t resolve people’s issues with it, or don’t seem to care about their problems, then your business will suffer.

Remember this. Even though you are the business owner and they are the consumer, you are both human beings and the interaction between both parties should feel like a human to human experience. Not one of those automated, half-effort responses we are used to dealing with.

 

Why Should You Rebrand Your Business?

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Ever wonder why big companies change up their brand “appearance” every few years?

Surprisingly, there are many different reasons for this.

Primarily, many businesses like to rebrand their company to feel up to date and to reposition themselves. For example, lately, there has been an influx of brands changing their brands to a more modern, minimalistic appeal.

Here’s an example of some of the biggest rebrands for 2021:

When it comes to repositioning, we can take a look at Walmart who changed its business slogan from “Always Low Prices” to “Save Money, Live Better”. Why was this so significant? Well, Walmart had a reputation for dirt cheap prices but wanted to provide some value/guarantee to their slogan. They knew that saving money led to a “better” life, subjectively. While these changes are minor, they can have a major impact on how people view your company, and sometimes it feels good to rebrand your business after using the same logos, colors, themes, for so long.

Rebrands don’t have to be drastic either, it’s all depending on your goals, and how you can make your company more “unique” compared to the competition in your field. For example, look at McDonald’s, which completely shifted into a “cafe” style restaurant.

Everybody misses the old McDonalds, including me. However, McDonald’s saw an opportunity for rebranding and took it. What was this opportunity? Well, there were quite a few. For example, the packaging of their products. This was changed to increase the “sustainability” of their previous packaging. (Which is also why many companies are switching to paper straws, due to climate change activism, and many people pointing the finger at large corporations.) As far as an overall rebrand, it was more of a reputation thing. In the United States, the obesity rates were rising through the roof in young children, and many feds pointed the finger at McDonald’s saying that they were too playful, and appealing to children.

Now with some background information and examples in your head, let’s look at the stats.

  1. Most importantly, consumers purchase from authentic brands, that they trust. What does this have to do with rebranding? Well look at big companies who have had controversy, and managed to “rebrand” to show that their company is a different company than before. For small business owners, you want to make sure you look professional, and up-to-date which is where a rebrand comes in. If you want to look more trustworthy, stop using your 1990s photoshopped logo, and switch to something more modern.
  2. First impressions make a BIG impact. Keep the above point in your head because it directly correlates with this one. If your brand is lacking visually, or business model-wise, it’s time to change that. Something business owners should always remember is that if they want more customers, you have to be in their face as much as possible. This means that branding your vehicles, running ads, branding company outfits, all work together like pieces of a pie, but with that being said the initial impression is definitely the most important.
  3. Be Consistent. If you’re going to rebrand your logo, for example, make sure that you are using that one logo everywhere. If your vehicle wrap has your old logo, it’s time to visit AngelStar Digital and update that to your new logo. In my opinion, as a marketing specialist, these are three of the most important branding tips I could give you.

Hopefully, this post helps you consider whether your brand is up-to-date for 2022, or still stuck in 2008.

Vehicle Advertising. Here’s why your business NEEDS it!

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Vehicle Advertising is a marketing trend that is growing more and more, each year.

What on earth is causing it to grow at such a rate?

Well first, let’s start off with some need-to-know facts about this form of OOH (Out-of-Home) advertising!

  • Vehicle wraps/decals give you between 30,000-70,000 ad impressions, depending on the density of your area.
  • A vehicle driven only 15,000km per year will pass by roughly 9,000,000 cars. (No exaggeration!)
  • Vehicle wraps/decals help improve brand recognition by almost 15% greater than other advertising mediums.

These were only a couple of the many reasons your business should be utilizing vehicle advertising.

Now, let’s discuss WHY those numbers are so high.

Let’s start with a scenario.

You live in the Greater Toronto Area, and you spend about 30-45 minutes commuting to work. You spend most of your commute in a “Stop-and-Go” traffic jam. While waiting for traffic to move, you notice a bright Orange and Blue pickup truck, wrapped in a company decal. It immediately caught your attention as it went by, sticking out like a sore thumb against the sea of silver, white, and black cars you’re normally used to seeing. The truck was from a local plumbing company in the area. When you get home from work, you notice that your pipes under our sink have been leaking. On your way to work the next day, you see that bright truck again, which has a decal on the bed of the truck with the company phone number. When you get home, you call the company and they show up.

This was obviously a highly sped-up scenario, but it gives you a general idea of how these things work.

Almost 70% of cars on the road follow a “grayscale” color scheme of white, gray, black, and silver. What this means, is that it is ridiculously easy to stand out amongst the crowd. Not only does this apply to automobile traffic, but to anywhere your vehicle can be seen with a pair of eyes.

Not only can wrapping your vehicle help your car stick out, and gain more “impressions”, it also helps people briefly understand what your brand is about.

Here’s an example showing just how much of an impact wrapping your vehicle can have.

Before:

After:

(Wrap performed by the talented team at AngelStar Digital, in Windsor, ON.)

Which one would catch your eye in traffic?

Hopefully, this blog post helped you realize how beneficial this could be for your business!

Let us know!

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Branding Questions for Small Businesses

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Consistency aside, strong branding will instill a clear and powerful message across all areas of your business, including your online presence, print advertisements, and even your own company culture. However, before you can set and reinforce both consumer and employee expectations, you must go beyond your name, slogan, and sales pitch, and get down to […]

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